


and i will hold on to you

by loodins



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Coming Out, Established Relationship, M/M, New Year's Kiss
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-01
Updated: 2018-01-01
Packaged: 2019-02-26 00:05:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13224048
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loodins/pseuds/loodins
Summary: They kept putting it off, and—it’s about to be 2018 and no one knows.So, in short, he’s with Mitch on New Years Eve, and he can’t fucking kiss him at midnight because they, what, forgot to tell their teammates they were dating?… yeah, Auston thinks. That’s exactly it.





	and i will hold on to you

**Author's Note:**

> If you're mentioned in this and/or know someone mentioned in this go ahead and turn away now. I have no connections to any of these dudes, don't know shit about them apart from what is public information. This is fictional! 
> 
> Title is from New Year's Day by Taylor Swift because obviously. 
> 
> I wrote this in like two hours while watching the game, so please excuse any errors. It's also... really... not "inspired" or anything, I was just bored and wanted an escape from that game (even though Wild Bill got a fucking hat trick!!!!!!!) and why not have a short lil NYE/NYD fic? Not beta'd, sorry for any mistakes!

Celebrating the turn of time that brings them into 2018 in the air, while flying through three different time zones is… different, Auston thinks.

If there’s one upside to it, it’s that he’s with his teammates and… Mitch, who is a teammate, yes, but is—well.

Alternatively, if there’s one downside to it, it’s that he’s with his teammates and _Mitch_ , who, again is a teammate but is— _well_ …

When he and Mitch started dating two weeks into their rookie season, they didn’t tell their teammates because, well, they weren’t sure how long it was going to last. They had _hopes_ , but they were also realistic. By the time it hit May and they were still together, they didn’t know how to let their teammates know that they had been dating behind their backs for seven months. (Not that they owed their teammates anything, just, well, it felt like they did sometimes.)

They kept putting it off, and—it’s about to be 2018 and no one knows.

So, in short, he’s with Mitch on New Years Eve, and he can’t fucking kiss him at midnight because they, what, forgot to tell their teammates they were dating?

… yeah, Auston thinks. That’s exactly it.

It’s a relatively calm, mellowed environment. Everyone is trying to forget the game—the absolute defensive shit show is going to be left in 2017, or at least that’s what Babs said after the game. He expects better in 2018. Auston does too, honestly, and he knows everyone else does, too. (Plus, they’re not allowed alcohol since they have to drive home from the airport.)

Half the team is sitting; half of them are wandering around in the open areas of the cabin. They have a timer counting down on someone’s phone that they connected to the TV to the New Year, and it’s at three minutes. He looks around. Everyone is broken off into little groups, as opposed to their normal seats.

He finds Mitch standing over the back of Willy and Hymie’s seats, watching a video on Willy’s phone. Auston makes his way over as the clock ticks down from two minutes to 1:59, 1:58, 1:57…

Mitch looks up and grins at him when Auston is only a few steps away. Auston nods at him, and takes a spot next to him. Mitch nudges him with his elbow. “What’s up?”

Auston shrugs, and looks at the video. It’s a video of a full-grown golden retriever with a puppy. Auston, some how, isn’t surprised that this is what they’re doing less than a minute and a half away from the new year.

When it’s over, Mitch looks to Auston again with another smile. “What’s up?” he asks again.

Auston shrugs and leans in to him slightly. “It’s almost midnight,” he comments, off hand. He looks back at the clock. Thirty seconds left. Everyone else around the cabin is starting to straighten up and watch the timer count down. Mitch glances at the clock, too, and then back at Auston. His eyes flick down to Auston’s lips and—well.

Mitch looks back at Auston’s eyes, and Auston smiles at him. He grabs Mitch’s elbow and pulls him away from the rows of chairs. Mitch is frowning but he follows easily.

Auston looks at Mitch’s lips, just as Mitch had, as the rest of the team starts the count down from ten. “Do you wanna?”

Mitch’s face transforms. The frown is gone and a grin stretches wide across his face. “Happy fucking New Year, eh?” He reaches up, curls his hands around Auston’s neck, and pulls him in for a kiss with two seconds to go.

It’s—not a kiss that Auston and Mitch would ever be able to pass off as friendly joking between two bros on New Year’s. It’s too much give and go, too much pushing into one another, and probably, if anyone is paying close enough attention, too much tongue.

 _And_ he thinks it definitely goes on for too long, but he’s—happy with it, still.

Mitch pulls away for a moment, nipping at Auston’s bottom lip as he goes, and then moves back in and bumps their noses together, tracing over his teeth marks in Auston’s lip with his tongue. Auston grips Mitch’s hips tighter and pulls him in, and sighs.

It’s blissful for another few seconds, and then there’s a cough and—

“Wait _what?_ ” someone screeches. It sounds a bit like Willy. Mitch laughs into the kiss and breaks away. Auston opens his eyes, and Mitch is still close—Auston sees more of Mitch’s nose than anything else, but he can see how red and swollen his lips are. Mitch is staring at something to Auston’s left and when Auston follows his eyes, sees Willy staring with a dropped jaw and eyebrows that are practically disappearing into his hairline.

With both of their eyes on him now, he starts looking around at the rest of the team who are mildly interested, but had a lack of reaction. Willy scowls. “Okay, don’t tell me I’m the only one who _saw_ that.”

Reemer snorts. “Willy, bud,” he says, moving to clap a hand on his shoulder. “I’m pretty sure you’re the only who _didn’t_ see it, if that surprised you.”

“Hey, wait,” Auston hears himself protest, frowning.

Gards rolls his eyes. “Sorry Matty. You guys are shit at hiding things.”

“Wait,” Mitch pulls away from Auston now, scowling. Auston reaches for him, cold with the sudden lack of contact, and puts his hand on Mitch’s lower back. “So we’ve been not-hiding a relationship for almost a year and a half when we didn’t _need_ to?”

“Wait _what?_ ” someone yells, and Auston knows for sure that isn’t Willy. He looks over and sees Marty turned away from Mo, who he had been talking to.

Mitch narrows his eyes. “What did you _mean_ we’re bad at hiding things?” he asks Gards.

“ _Feelings_ ,” Gards says with, well, feeling. “We thought you were _pining_.”

“You thought we had feelings and didn’t think we were in a relationship?” Auston pouts, moving his hand so it’s on Mitch’s hip now. Mitch moves back so Auston’s arm is curled around his back. He leans into Auston and wraps his own arm around Auston’s waist.

“Honestly?” Naz jumps in, “We didn’t think you had the emotional maturity.”

Mitch scoffs, and then murmurs “emotional maturity” to himself like it’s the most ridiculous thing he’s heard this year (or—since 2016, Auston guesses). He looks up at Auston and grins. “We’re plenty emotionally mature, fuckers.”

“ _Since when?_ ” Willy demands, still looking shell shocked, and also a little angry as he looks around the cabin realizing that the entire team had suspicions and no one told him.

“Like—the 27th of October? Last year?”

Hymie raises his hand because he’ll be organized, even when it comes to speaking, Auston thinks. “Okay, but like, 2017 or—“

Mitch holds up his middle finger at him. “Shut _up_ ,” he laughs. “2016, asshole.”

“Okay but like— _how?_ ”

Auston looks at Reemer and blushes. “Mitch—had a good game.”

The entire plane laughs at that, and Auston ducks his head to hide his face in Mitch’s neck.

“So am I a father-in-law now?” Marty asks. “I’m too young for that—oh god, please don’t have any kids soon.”

“Think of _me_ ,” Patty interjects with a comforting smile towards Mitch and Auston. “They’re _both_ my sons.”

“Sorry for not taking your feelings into account, Dads,” Mitch says while rolling his eyes. “I know your happiness is more important than your _son’s_.”

Auston watches the tennis match between the three of them continue, though Patty shoots Auston a small smile occasionally, too.

Auston is just—overwhelmed for the moment, because thinking about it—they just came out. To like. A fuckton of people. And those people are all—happy for and supportive of them.

He looks around, feeling relieved, and—catches Babs’ eye. His coach is smiling at him. It’s perhaps the most proud smile Auston has ever seen from him, and Auston scored _four goals_ in his debut and him and Mitch both broke rookie records last year, and—well, there have been plenty of times for Babs to be proud of them. As Auston holds his gaze, Babs nods once, and then turns back to the iPad in his hands. He’s not sure what to make of it, but—it’s good.

“Aus,” Mitch says, tapping on Auston’s abs with an open hand. Auston’s focus breaks from his coach and he turns to look down at Mitch. Mitch is grinning wide. “I can kiss you literally whenever now.”

“I think _literally whenever_ is a bit of an over exagger—“

Mitch twists away from Auston’s side so he’s standing in front of him and pushes on his toes to kiss Auston again. Auston takes the hint and stops talking, and kisses back.

“Hey,” Mitch says, pulling away, but not far enough, and his lips still brush Auston’s as he speaks. “I love you. A lot.”

“Yeah, you too,” Auston replies, and barely has to tilt his head so their lips are connected again.

**Author's Note:**

> warnings:  
> * i don't think there are any? let me know if you think otherwise and i'll change it!! 
> 
> So if you're wondering how Auston and Mitch got together, and what Auston meant with the "he had a really good game"-- October 27th Mitch had his first three point night, all v pretty assists. He did have a very good game. So, Auston and Mitch were driving together-- Mitch pulls into Auston's place's drive and Auston says Mitch's name, Mitch looks at him, and Auston leans in and kisses him, and then says "hey, good game" and leaves. Mitch, who is sitting there v confused, shuts the car off and chases after Auston who is v embarrassed and apologetic and Mitch is like "dude I had a three point night and was first star, I think I deserve better than some weak peck on the side of the mouth." Auston is v confused until Mitch kisses him, and then Auston isn't really confused anymore. (A few minutes later, Auston asks him why he didn't get anything for his four goal night. Mitch tells him that deserves more than a kiss, and Auston asks him to come inside.) 
> 
> ((Auston's dad wakes up the next morning and goes to wake Auston up for breakfast because Auston always tries to set his alarms so he can sleep in, but Brian isn't about that. He's not too surprised when Mitch is curled up against Auston (he's not an idiot), but he does let them sleep in which surprises Auston later after he gets over his embarrassment.)) 
> 
> I hope you all had wonderful holidays, and that your New Year is great as well! Be safe, be careful, have fun!


End file.
